Street Soccer Ball

ABSTRACT

A novel street soccer ball having a carcass of a tough, durable material for improved wear on hard surfaces and a filler material to reduce and deaden the bounce of the soccer ball is disclosed. The inflatable bladder is similar to bladders used in many sports balls and is inflatable to provide adequate performance and feel to the soccer ball. Inside the inflatable bladder, a stuffing or filler material is included that deadens the bounce of the soccer ball to improve play of the soccer ball on hard surfaces such as asphalt, concrete, or dirt. While the stuffing or filler material is located inside the inflatable bladder, the air pressure of the bladder is the primary contributor to the shape and feel of the ball, and the stuffing or filler material primarily contributes to deadening the ball&#39;s bounce.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.60/909,675, filed Apr. 2, 2007.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a soccer ball, and more particularly toa durable, low- to mid-bounce soccer ball for use as a street soccerball, such as on hard and/or abrasive surfaces such as dirt and asphalt.

2. Background and Related Art

Soccer is one of the most popular sports worldwide. While organizedsoccer is often played on grass or synthetic-surface fields dedicated tothe purpose, many unorganized soccer games occur on streets or dirtfields for various reasons. In some cases, it is simply a matter ofconvenience: when only a limited amount of time is available, it isoften more convenient to simply play a quick game in the street than totake the time to find an available grass surface to play on. In othercases, playing on a dirt field or on the street is a matter ofnecessity: many people simply do not have access to a suitable grasssurface to play on. Many fine soccer players have honed their skillsplaying soccer in the street or on dirt surfaces.

Playing soccer in the street or on a hard-packed dirt surface hascertain disadvantages that are not adequately addressed bycurrently-available soccer equipment. For example, conventional soccerballs are typically designed for play on grass or synthetic grasssurfaces, and do not perform in the same way on non-grass surfaces suchas dirt, asphalt, concrete, etc., or they do not perform as would bedesired for the limited space typically available for a street soccergame. For example, conventional soccer balls bounce too strongly on suchsurfaces; in a street soccer game, a ball that bounces too much mayquickly leave the desired playing area, requiring lost playing time forball recovery. Additionally, conventional soccer balls quickly wear outwhen used on such surfaces, as such surfaces tend to be much more highlyabrasive than the typical grass or synthetic grass playing surface.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the street soccer ball have a carcass of a tough, durablematerial for improved wear on hard surfaces. The embodiments also havean inflatable, pressurized bladder similar to bladders used in manysports balls. Inside the inflatable bladder, a stuffing or fillermaterial is included that deadens the bounce of the soccer ball toimprove play of the soccer ball on hard surfaces such as those typicallyencountered in street soccer situations. The stuffing or filler materialthat reduces or deadens the bounce of the street soccer ball may beincluded inside the inflatable bladder in varying amounts; however, thestuffing or filler material is of an amount to deaden the bounce but isnot of an amount such that the filler material or stuffing materiallycontributes to the maintaining of the shape of the street soccer ball asthe ball is used. This function is provided by the inflatable bladder,and not by the filler or stuffing, as will be appreciated by theappended description and by reference to the Figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

The objects and features of the present invention will become more fullyapparent from the following description and appended claims, taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings. Understanding that thesedrawings depict only typical embodiments of the invention and are,therefore, not to be considered limiting of its scope, the inventionwill be described and explained with additional specificity and detailthrough the use of the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of an embodiment of a soccer ball inaccordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 shows a sectional view of a carcass and inflatable bladder of anembodiment of a soccer ball in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 3 shows a sectional view of the carcass and inflatable bladder ofFIG. 2 and also shows filler material inside the inflatable bladder inaccordance with embodiments of the present invention; and

FIG. 4 shows a partial cutaway view of an embodiment of a soccer ball inaccordance with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

A description of the embodiments of the present invention will now begiven with reference to the Figures. It is expected that the presentinvention may take many other forms and shapes, hence the followingdisclosure is intended to be illustrative and not limiting, and thescope of the invention should be determined by reference to the appendedclaims.

Embodiments of the street soccer ball have a carcass of a tough, durablematerial for improved wear on hard surfaces. The embodiments also havean inflatable, pressurized bladder similar to bladders used in manysports balls. Inside the inflatable bladder, a stuffing or fillermaterial is included that deadens the bounce of the soccer ball toimprove play of the soccer ball on hard surfaces such as those typicallyencountered in street soccer situations. The stuffing or filler materialthat reduces or deadens the bounce of the street soccer ball may beincluded inside the inflatable bladder in varying amounts; however, thestuffing or filler material is of an amount to deaden the bounce but isnot of an amount such that the filler material or stuffing materiallycontributes to the maintaining of the shape of the street soccer ball asthe ball is used. This function is provided by the inflatable bladder,and not by the filler or stuffing, as will be appreciated by thefollowing description and reference to the appended Figures, which arespecifically incorporated into this detailed description by reference.

In the specification and in the claims, the term “inflatable bladder”means a bladder capable of being inflated so as to receive and hold anair pressure significantly higher than the ambient air pressure,consistent with air pressures typically used to inflate sports ballssuch as soccer balls. The bladder capable of being inflated may includematerials standard to such bladders, such as latex and butyl, or anyother material that is substantially airtight and suitable for use as abladder.

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the street soccer ball 20. The streetsoccer ball has an outer surface, commonly known as a carcass 22. Thecarcass 22 may include a number of panels 24 that may be connected by avariety of mechanisms, such as by stitching or welding. In alternateembodiments, the carcass 22 may be molded or formed without panels 24.In such embodiments, faux panels 24 may be stamped or formed in thecarcass 22, or the carcass 22 may be relatively smooth-surfaced. In atypical soccer ball configuration, the panels 24 may include a patternof panels whereby six hexagonal panels 26 surround pentagonal panels 28,such that each hexagonal panel 26 is located adjacent three hexagonalpanels 28 and three pentagonal panels 26. In this manner, thesubstantially-spherical soccer ball 20 may be formed by thirty-twopanels 24. While the embodiment of the soccer ball 20 shown in FIG. 1shows a soccer ball that may be made using thirty-two panels 24 havinghexagonal and pentagonal shapes, other numbers, sizes, and shapes ofpanels 24 may be used for the carcass 22 to form the outer surface ofthe soccer ball 20, including fancifully-shaped panels 24. The actualnumbers and shapes of the panels 24, the designs shown on the outersurface of the soccer ball 20, and the outward appearance of the soccerball 20 are not deemed important to the functioning of the embodimentsof the invention.

FIG. 2 shows an enlarged sectional view of the soccer ball 20 at thesurface of the soccer ball 20. The sectional view of the soccer ball 20shows the junction of two panels 24. In the embodiment shown, the panels24 are joined by stitching 30. When stitching 30 is used to join thepanels 24, the stitching 30 may be of any type of suitable thread, suchas polyester thread, and the stitching 30 may be machine-stitched orhand-stitched. Each panel 24 may include several layers, as isillustrated in FIG. 2. The outermost layer may be a durable surfacelayer 32 that wears well during use so as to extend the life of thesoccer ball 20 during use on abrasive surfaces such as asphalt,concrete, and dirt. While the durable surface layer 32 may be formed ofany appropriate durable material, examples of materials suitable for thedurable surface layer 32 include natural and synthetic rubber, as wellas cordly kid material or any other durable material.

In some embodiments, the durable surface layer includes a material, suchas rubber, that is subject to a substantial amount of deformation understress. Therefore, a second layer 34 may be provided that limits theflexibility and deformation of the durable surface layer 32. Thislimitation on flexibility allows the soccer ball 20 to be inflated to aproper size limited by the second layer 34 without overly swelling underpressure that might otherwise occur if an unsupported durable surfacelayer 32 were used without the second layer 34. The second layer 34 mayinclude a material or fabric and may itself be formed of several layersof material or fabric for extra strength. Additionally, when formed ofseveral layers of fabric or material, the layers of fabric or materialmay be disposed at differing angles to increase the strength of thesecond layer 34.

The tensile strength of the second layer 34 serves an additional purposein some embodiments of providing security to the stitching 30. Thestitching 30 is less likely to tear through the fabric of the secondlayer 34 than it would if the stitching 30 extended solely through asubstantially-compliant durable surface layer 32. In some embodiments,the durable surface layer 32 and the second layer 34 may be integrallyor jointly formed. As one example, the fabric of the second layer 34 maybe rubberized (thus forming the durable surface layer 32 on the secondlayer 34) so as to form a laminated material. The material, fabric, orcloth of the second layer 34 may be a natural or synthetic material, andthe thicknesses of the durable surface layer 32 and the second layer 34may be varied to provide extra strength, extra durability, and/or tovary the weight of the soccer ball 20.

In one embodiment, the thicknesses of each of the durable surface layer32 and the second layer 34 are approximately one millimeter. In otherembodiments, the durable surface layer 32 may be relatively thicker thanthe second layer 34 and the second layer 34 may be relatively thinnerthan the durable surface layer 32, such as is depicted in FIG. 2. Inother embodiments, the durable surface layer 32 may be thinner and thesecond layer 34 may be thicker. In still other embodiments, both layers32 and 34 may be thicker or thinner than approximately 1 millimeter. Oneof skill in the art will be able to readily determine suitablethicknesses for the durable surface layer 32 and the second layer 34 inorder to provide a desired durability, strength, and weight of thesoccer ball 20. Furthermore, one of skill in the art will readilyappreciate that additional layers may be added to provide certaincharacteristics to the soccer ball 20, such as additional padding layersto vary the feel and touch of the soccer ball 20.

FIG. 2 shows one additional feature of the soccer ball 20. FIG. 2 alsoshows an inflatable bladder 36. As is commonly known in the art, usingan inflatable bladder such as the inflatable bladder 36 is desirable forsports balls because it provides a desirable rigidity and bouncecharacteristic for sports balls without requiring that the carcass 22 beairtight. For example, one embodiment of the soccer ball 20 may have arecommended inflation pressure of 0.7-1.0 Bar (or approximately 10-15pounds per square inch (PSI)). Another embodiment may have a recommendedpressure complying with Fédération Internationale de FootballAssociation (International Federation of Football Association—FIFA)rules of 8.5-15.6 PSI. The pressures given are by way of example, andnot limitation, and are meant merely to show that it is desirable tohave an inflatable bladder for soccer balls such as soccer ball 20. Itis difficult or impossible to make a stitched carcass airtight andcapable of containing this kind of pressure on its own, so theinflatable bladder 36 is provided to give the soccer ball 20 thiscapability. The inflatable bladder is typically substantially spherical,and may be made of a substantially flexible material, such as latexrubber or butyl rubber, to allow the inflatable bladder to press upagainst and conform to the inner surface of the carcass 22 wheninflated, as seen in FIG. 2. The embodiments of the invention embraceany thickness of the inflatable bladder 36 capable of providing thenecessary airtight inflation and pressure to give the soccer ball 20 thedesired performance. By way of example and not limitation, theinflatable bladder may have a thickness of approximately one-half to onemillimeter.

In use, it is typically desired that the soccer ball 20 have a certainfeel and performance when kicked by a soccer player. This feel andperformance necessitates a certain range of internal pressures containedby the inflatable bladder 36. If the internal pressure is too low, thesoccer ball 20 will deform too much when kicked, headed, etc., and willnot perform properly. A typical properly-inflated soccer ball, however,has too much bounce to be used as a street soccer ball. Therefore, thesoccer ball 20 may be provided with a filler material or stuffing(hereinafter referred to as “filler 38”) loosely located inside theinflatable bladder 36, as illustrated in FIG. 3.

In some embodiments, the filler 38 is wholly contained inside theinflatable bladder 36, and when the inflatable bladder 36 is fullyinflated and the soccer ball 20 has been used for a period of time, thefiller 38 may be naturally distributed substantially evenly inside theinflatable bladder 36. This distribution may occur because the filler 38is only loosely located inside the inflatable bladder 36, and ittherefore is free to shift and expand as the soccer ball 20 is kickedand otherwise played with. The filler 38 may be any type of natural orsynthetic material, and typically makes up only a modestly small amountof the total weight of the soccer ball 20. By way of example and notlimitation, the filler 38 may make up approximately ten percent of thetotal mass of the soccer ball 20 in one embodiment. In otherembodiments, the filler 38 may make up between approximately five andthirty percent of the mass of the soccer ball 20. Exemplary amounts offiller 38 are approximately five, fifteen, twenty, twenty-five, andthirty percent of the total mass of the soccer ball 20.

The total amount of the filler 38 located in the inflatable bladder 36generally provides an insubstantial amount of force on the carcass 22when the soccer ball 20 is fully inflated. That is to say, that the airpressure inside the inflatable bladder 36 is primarily responsible forthe outwardly-directed force applied to the inner surface of the carcass22, and any force applied by the filler 38 when the soccer ball 20 is atrest is generally small when compared to the force applied by the airpressure. Thus, when the inflatable bladder 36 is deflated, the soccerball 20 may be readily deformed and/or compressed, such as may be donefor storing or shipping the soccer ball 20 in a smaller container thanwould be required to store or ship the soccer ball 20 in an inflatedstate. This may be appreciated by reference to FIG. 4, which shows acutaway view of one embodiment of the soccer ball 20.

In FIG. 4, a portion of the carcass 22 has been cut away to show theinflatable bladder 36 in a not-fully-inflated state. Additionally, theinflatable bladder 36 has been cut away to show a depiction of thefiller 38 inside the inflatable bladder 36. As may be seen from FIG. 4,the inflatable bladder 36 and filler 38 may take up substantially lessspace inside the carcass 22 in a non-fully-inflated state than isavailable. Thus, the filler 38 typically does not primarily serve tomaintain the shape of the soccer ball 20, as this function is primarilyperformed by inflating the inflatable bladder 36. Instead, the filler 38performs the primary function of lessening or deadening the amount ofbounce of the soccer ball 20, making the soccer ball 20 in accordancewith the embodiments of the invention more suitable for use on hardsurfaces and as a street soccer ball, as it provides a low- tomedium-bounce ball.

By way of example and not limitation, the filler 38 may be any naturalor synthetic material, and need not be entirely uniform or consistent.Examples of suitable materials for filler 38 include cotton such asraw-type cotton of the consistency used for cotton balls, fusedpolyester such as used for typical batting material, or other similarnatural or synthetic materials. Even scrap pieces of cloth or of theabove materials may be used, providing a convenient use for such scrapmaterials left over from other textile manufacturing processes. Eventhread, yarn, or other materials may be used. In some instances, using asynthetic material less prone to moisture-related rot problems may bedesirable over the use of natural materials to limit any problems withmold or otherwise related to inflation using humid air. Additionally,the filler 38 may be treated with a treatment to reduce such potentialproblems. Other materials may be used for the filler 38 as long as thematerial fulfils the purposes of the filler 38 described herein. Otherexamples of materials that could potentially be used for the filler 38include microbeads such as the polystyrene foam beads sometimes used inpillows and toys and the like.

The filler 38 deadens and reduces the bounce of the soccer ball 20 byabsorbing some of the energy of the soccer ball that would otherwise betransferred into a rebound by the soccer ball after hitting a surface.When soccer balls 20 in accordance with the embodiments of the presentinvention bounce, the filler 38 shifts inside the inflated inflatablebladder 36 to absorb a portion of the energy of impact, thus reducingthe amount of energy that remains in the carcass 22 and inflatablebladder 36 to be released in the bounce. This is advantageous for astreet soccer ball, as the size of the playing area and the number ofplayers is often reduced, and a low- to mid-bounce ball is less likelyto bounce out of the playing area and is easier to control. Thus, anymaterial that performs the described functions may be used as the filler38, whether fibrous or non-fibrous.

FIG. 4 also shows a valve 40 attached to the inflatable bladder 36. Thevalve 40 has an aperture (not shown) that passes through the carcass 22to allow inflation of the inflatable bladder 36 using a pump and needle.The valve aperture may be all that is visible from the outside of thesoccer ball 20, and many types of valves and valve attachments are knownin the art and are embraced for use with the embodiments of the presentinvention. When the inflatable bladder 36 is manufactured, it may bemanufactured having a small hole at the location where the valve 40 isto be located. Then, before the valve 40 is attached to the inflatablebladder 36, the filler 38 may be placed inside the inflatable bladder36. Once the valve 40 is attached to the inflatable bladder 36, thefiller 38 is permanently contained within the inflatable bladder. Othermethods may be used to insert the filler 38 in the inflatable bladder36, and the above method of inserting the filler 38 into the bladder 36is provided by way of example.

While soccer balls in accordance with the embodiments of the presentinvention may be made of varying sizes and weights, including FIFAstandard/official size 3 (23-24 inches in circumference and between11-12 ounces), size 4 (25-26 inches in circumference and 12-13 ounces),and size 5 (27-28 inches in circumference and 14-16 ounces), it isanticipated that the embodiments of the soccer ball 20 may vary fromstandard soccer ball characteristics. For example, in one exemplaryembodiment, the soccer ball 20 may have size and weight characteristicsclosely approximating the size and weight of a futsal ball. One suchembodiment of the soccer ball 20 has a circumference of 25 to 26 inches(or 64-66 centimeters) and a weight of 15 to 16 ounces (or 430 to 445grams). Any other circumference and weight is embraced by the scope ofthe embodiments of the invention.

The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms withoutdeparting from its spirit or essential characteristics. The describedembodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrativeand not restrictive. The scope of the invention is, therefore, indicatedby the appended claims, rather than by the foregoing description. Allchanges which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of theclaims are to be embraced within their scope.

1. A reduced-bounce soccer ball comprising: a carcass; an inflatablebladder; and a filler material loosely located inside the inflatablebladder, the filler material being provided in an amount to effectivelydeaden the bounce of the soccer ball.
 2. The reduced-bounce soccer ballof claim 1, wherein the carcass comprises a plurality of panels.
 3. Thereduced-bounce soccer ball of claim 2, wherein the panels are stitchedtogether to form the carcass.
 4. The reduced-bounce soccer ball of claim3, wherein the panels are formed from a rubberized fabric.
 5. Thereduced-bounce soccer ball of claim 1, wherein the carcass is formedfrom a high-durability material to provide improved wear characteristicsto the reduced-bounce soccer ball.
 6. The reduced-bounce soccer ball ofclaim 1, wherein the carcass comprises a durable surface layer and asecond layer that provides shape and strength to the durable surfacelayer.
 7. The reduced-bounce soccer ball of claim 1, wherein the carcasscomprises a plurality of panels of rubberized fabric.
 8. Thereduced-bounce soccer ball of claim 1, wherein the filler materialcomprises between five and thirty percent of the total weight of thereduced-bounce soccer ball.
 9. The reduced-bounce soccer ball of claim1, wherein the filler material comprises between ten and twenty percentof the total weight of the reduced-bounce soccer ball.
 10. Thereduced-bounce soccer ball of claim 1, wherein the filler materialcomprises a material chosen from the group of: polyester; cotton; andpolystyrene.
 11. The reduced-bounce soccer ball of claim 1, wherein thereduced-bounce soccer ball has a weight between 12 and 16 ounces, acircumference between 25 and 26 inches, and wherein the filler materialcomprises between ten and twenty percent of the total weight of thereduced-bounce soccer ball.
 12. A reduced-bounce soccer ball comprising:a high-durability carcass; an inflatable bladder; and a filler materialloosely located inside the inflatable bladder, the filler materialcomprising between five and thirty percent of the total weight of thereduced-bounce soccer ball, and wherein the filler material is providedin an amount to effectively deaden the bounce of the soccer ball. 13.The reduced-bounce soccer ball of claim 12, wherein the filler materialcomprises a material chosen from the group of: polyester; cotton; andpolystyrene.
 14. The reduced-bounce soccer ball of claim 12, wherein thefiller material comprises between ten and twenty percent of the totalweight of the reduced-bounce soccer ball.
 15. The reduced-bounce soccerball of claim 12, wherein the high-durability carcass comprises aplurality of panels.
 16. The reduced-bounce soccer ball of claim 15,wherein the panels are formed from a rubberized fabric.
 17. Areduced-bounce street soccer ball comprising: a high-durability carcasshaving a durable surface layer and a second layer that provides shapeand strength to the durable surface layer; an inflatable bladder; and afiller material loosely located inside the inflatable bladder, thefiller material comprising between ten and twenty percent of the totalweight of the reduced-bounce street soccer ball, and wherein the fillermaterial is provided in an amount to effectively deaden the bounce ofthe soccer ball.
 18. The reduced-bounce street soccer ball of claim 17,wherein the inflatable bladder comprises a valve and a material selectedfrom the group of: latex rubber; and butyl rubber.
 19. Thereduced-bounce soccer ball of claim 17, wherein the filler materialcomprises a material chosen from the group of: polyester; cotton; andpolystyrene.
 20. The reduced-bounce street soccer ball of claim 17,wherein the high-durability carcass comprises a plurality of panelsformed from a rubberized fabric.